Freedom in England and Wales

There are many interesting traditions in England that date back even before the Norman Conquest. Laws applying to customs remain in force until they are displaced by statutory Acts of Parliament. Ancient rules and regulations apply to common lands, grazing rights, rights of way, to hunting and fishing, among others and especially to the defence of our personal liberties. It is not so long ago (1830s) that our country was very much governed by the custom of recognised traditions.

I am a freeman commoner of Sudbury in Suffolk, freeman being a nineteenth-century term for those previously known as free burgesses of borough towns and cities throughout Britain. In my case it is a hereditary title. Freedom in this form dates back to before Alfred the Great and is very much a part of the English heritage.

Today, if I were to simply introduce the subject of our cultural heritage, I might be accused of being undemocratic. This would be an unfair view of having a pride in many of our past practices. Having said that, the ‘freedom’ to which I refer was diplomatically curbed under the Reform Acts of the 1830s.

The free burgesses now commonly known as freemen were the denizens of the old boroughs and cities, they operated the trade and government in quite an insular way. A vast majority of the towns in England had their origins as burghs. Hence their occupants were known as burgesses. Their chartered freedom came from the protection of a local lord and their given common ability to govern their own activities.

Burghs, later termed boroughs were initially small, fortified settlements that developed into towns. You will recognise their layout today with their north, south, east, and west streets. Originally gated at each end for protection. Their town walls began as earthen ramparts topped with wooden palisades. The larger borough towns and cities eventually became walled in stone. This form of enclosure made the boroughs rather insular in their dealings with the outside world beyond their walls.

Prior to 1835 and the Municipal Corporations Act, only recognised ‘freemen’ had the right to vote in local and national elections. This meant they controlled and manipulated the local politics, manufacturing, and trade. Some activities were benevolent and some not so democratic. The lack of democracy eventually led to the Great Reform that deposed Lord Wellington the then prime minister.

The boroughs had markets and fairs for trading and many of them had their own Mint. There were three ways in which a male {only} could gain the freedom of the borough, and this would include access to grazing horses or cattle on the town commons. The first was through heritage at the age of 21, or via servitude (apprenticeship) to a freeman master, or by purchase or gift.

There were three forms of borough town, and they each governed by their specific charters accordingly. These could be Royal, Seignorial or Ecclesiastical. This formed their Incorporation and those with sovereign signature were able to send two representatives to Parliament. You may have heard of the so called ‘Rotten’ boroughs where aristocrats were able to purchase the control of some boroughs leading to the Reform Acts.

The background to the system of ‘Freedom’ is one of kinship and relates to the early tribal rites and viewed as quite wrong in today’s society. The sons of freemen when reaching the age of 21, would swear an oath of allegiance before the Mayor and Aldermen to abide by the law and regulations of the sovereign and the town.

A great benefit to the recognised freeman was the access to the town ‘common lands’ to graze animals, to fish in river or ponds and to collect timber etc. They had freedom of passage and often this may be extended throughout the nation.

Within the borough town, only the ‘freemen’ were able to manufacture or to trade, they had freedom of tolls and most importantly allowed to vote. This led to all forms of corruption, including the sales of votes at high prices. Elections were virtually a closed shop. The rights of a freeman were both valuable and powerful. Today it is more a somewhat honorific position.

Alongside the development of the borough freedom was the growth of the Gilds or Guilds. In early times they were of a religious nature for the protection of hard times. As they grew over the centuries, they played a large part in the government of the quality and pricing of goods and services. Churches and chapels were dedicated to certain guilds.

A good example of the local government in the past can be found in the two bridges at Gloucester at the West Gate. An inner bridge (no longer there) was called the ‘Foreign Bridge’ where traders and visitors were checked for their correct credentials.

In the Great Reform Acts Lord Wellington was unseated and a much more liberal democracy introduced. Backed by the Municipal Corporations Act of 1835, voting was made more universal, and the Freemen’s lands came under the freehold of the new Councils. Freemen retain their rights to the surface herbage of the town commons.

However, many guilds of freemen sold their property rights and invested into Trusts that now benefit their hometowns. I am a trustee of such lands and charitable investments at Sudbury, Suffolk. While in the past the public were restricted to permissive paths across freemen’s land, nowadays, since the 2003, Countryside and Rights of Way Act, the general public can now roam freely for quiet recreation.

In the City of London, I am a Freeman and a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Blacksmiths. This gives me access to a number of customary activities. It is the liverymen of the companies that elect each new Lord Mayor in the ‘Common Hall (London Guildhall). On such occasions, I may be invited to the privacy of the ‘Silent Ceremony’ (robing of the new mayor). There are many unique ceremonies associated with the freedom of the City of London.

London

London has been the prime establishment from before the days of the Norman Conquest and William I proclaimed that its ancient traditions and liberties were to be preserved,

Post comment, – ‘Burgesses’ became the common expression used to describe members of Parliament representing their various borough towns. It also relates to the Burgermeisters on the Continent as a general term for local politicians.

In 1885, the Honorary Freedom of Boroughs Act, gave Councils the power to permit ‘Honorary’ Freedom to worthy residents. Freedom of a town or city is a highly regarded status. However, it is an honorable title only and has no rights or inheritance right to pass onwards.

While the Act of 1835 removed the general powers of the Freemen it subsequently recognised freemen’s ‘personal property’ including all rights of heritage. The Freemen of London were not obstructed by the Act and freedom can be gained by purchase or gift as well as by inheritance.

Alan Shelley

NOTE

In 877 the Vikings came down the Avon and Severn and occupied Gloucester for nearly nine months. Although they did little damage, it firmed up the plans for the protection of Wessex by King Alfred, leading to the national Burghal plan. For more on the subject of ‘Freedom’ see my website by googling AlanShelley.org

Weekend at Warwick with the Freemen of England and Wales